Key points
- National residential property listings fell in May by 0.3% to 226,262 dwellings from 227,020 recorded in April.
- Nationally, new listings (Less than 30 days) rose by 3.0% in May, with 62,244 new property listings added onto the market. Yet this represents a 16.9% decrease compared to May 2022.
- Listings greater than 180 days old rose by 1.5% to over 64,227 dwellings.
- Rises in new listings were offset by large falls of listings between 30 to 60 days old.
- Distressed property listings fell by 3.8%.
- National combined dwelling asking prices rose by 2.1% over the month. Asking prices in the capital cities rose by 0.8% led by a 1.9% rise in Adelaide.
- South East Queensland, North Coast NSW and Hobart record large falls in asking prices.
Figures released by SQM Research reveal national residential property listings fell in May by 0.3% to 226,262 properties, from 227,020 recorded in April, 2023. The decrease was primarily influenced by falls in listings for Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth as well as large declines for listings that had been on the market between 30 to 60 days.
Sydney recorded a slight increase of 0.4% in listings. Additionally, Canberra and Darwin also recorded increases of 3.0% and 3.6% respectively.
Over a 12-month period, there was a 1.1% increase in residential property listings across the country, with falls in our larger cities being offset by rises in smaller cities and regions. Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart has recorded an increase of 0.9%, 19.1% and 68.8% rise respectively.
New listings
Nationally, new listings (Less than 30 days) rose by 3.0% in May, with 62,244 new property listings added to the market. Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have recorded a rise of 11.1%, 2.5% and 2.9%, respectively. New listing numbers for the other cities recorded mixed results with strong rises registered on Canberra of 13.4% while there were large falls in Darwin and Hobart.
SQM Research expects between a 15% to 20% decline in new listings for June due to normal winter lull in activity.
Old listings
Older listings (properties that have been on the market over 180 days) also rose by another 1.5% in May and are up by 28.9% for the past 12 months. Most cities recorded increases in older stock except for Melbourne, Perth and Canberra.
As described, listings that were on the market between 30 to 60 days declined by 5,193 properties, indicating higher selling rates for these properties.
Distressed listings
SQM Research’s latest release notes that as of May 2023, the number of residential properties selling under distressed conditions in Australia decreased to 5,572, a drop of 3.8% from 5,793 distressed listings recorded in April 2023. The decrease in distressed selling activity was mainly driven by falls in Queensland (down 6.1%), ACT (down 28.6%) and South Australia (down 4.5%) compared to last month.
Asking prices rise again
Nationally, vendor asking prices recorded a second consecutive monthly rise. The rise in the month of May of 2.1% was driven by a number of sharp rises in asking prices on houses for Page 4 of 5
regional Australia plus some ongoing rises in our larger capital cities. Brisbane recorded a 1.7% increase in asking prices. Adelaide recorded a rise of 1.9%. South Western Australia recorded a substantial rise in vendor sentiment with a 4% increase in asking prices just for the month. Hobart bucked the trend with a 1.4% decline in dwelling asking prices.
Meanwhile, South East Queensland and North Coast NSW appear to be recording a correction in asking prices, with a 0.8% decrease in North Coast NSW dwellings, a 2.4% decrease for Southern Gold Coast Dwellings and a 3% decrease in asking prices for dwellings in Surfers Paradise. Given the unprecedented rises in the housing market recorded over 2021 and 2022 for South East Queensland and North Coast NSW,
SQM Research is watching this change in the market conditions with interest.
Louis Christopher, Managing Director of SQM Research said: “Overall, listings activity for the month of May, was a positive for vendors with evidence of higher absorption rates and slightly less competition from other property sellers. Distressed selling activity remains at benign levels with the exception of Tasmania where there was a further 5% increase in such stock.
“As we move into the winter months, it is quite likely we will record further drops in total national listings driven by a large drop in new listings, particularly if auction clearance rates hold at current bullish levels. Typically, new listings fall between 10% to 20% over the month of June due to the seasonal winter conditions.
“With reduced stock levels and more buyers in the market, property sellers have been lifting their asking prices and this in turn suggests official estimates of actual housing price changes will record another rise over June and perhaps into July, even with another lift in the cash rate on the cards.
“However further rises in the target cash rate represent a clear risk for housing market participants over the medium term. While sellers to date have largely battered away the interest rate rises of 2022 and 2023, we as a research house believe we are close to a cash rate setting which could tip the scales and induce a significant increase in forced selling. Indeed, some regions such as Hobart and South East Queensland may be feeling the stress of the rate rises given some sharp rises in distressed listings activity and falls in asking prices.
“That said, the reversal of population flows away from regional areas which previously enjoyed a lockdown boom in population growth rates, is likely to be the main contributor to the current downturn in these areas.”
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